Dredged Up

Issue 33
Autumn 2023

Archaeology Finds Reporting Ser vice Newsletter

Welcome to Issue 33 of
Dredged Up, the newsletter of
the Marine Aggregate Industry
Archaeological Protocol. Since the
last newsletter in Spring 2023,
41 finds have been reported in
32 reports.
Pages 2 and 3 take a different kind of a look at
recent finds reported since the last newsletter –
focussing on aircraft material from Area 340.
A huge thank you to everyone who reported
other types of material from other areas as well –
all Wharf Reports will be available in the Annual
Report later this year.

Page 4 highlights one of the most exciting finds

reported to the protocol – ‘’Cedric’’ the mammoth
tooth! Page 5 goes on to take a deeper dive on
mammoths and how their teeth are interesting
and useful for archaeologists!

Some of this year’s Awareness Visits are

celebrated on page 6 including to Cemex
Dagenham, the new Brett wharf at Portsmouth
and aboard Britannia Beaver!

A fun quiz covering some of the almost 2,500 finds Lowri with “Cedric” the mommoth tooth -
reported to the Protocol is on page 7! see page 6 to learn more!

Goodbyes!
The implementation team have had to say
goodbye to some members recently, on page 8
we say farewell to Lowri and Amy and see what
their highlights of the Protocol are! And we
welcome aboard new members Stephanie Morris
and Adam Nightingale.

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 Finds Round Up - More aircraft material from Licence Area 340
One of the great things to come from the proactive reporting of
finds by wharf and vessel staff is that we get to discover things
not seen in previous surveys, investigations of the areas, or
recorded in the Historic Environment Records. The spate of
recent finds from Licence Area 340, located south east of the
Isle of Wight, is one example where this has occurred.
The reporting of five finds from Brett and Britannia, including
parts from an aircraft’s engines, wings and fuselage, and a
piece of aircrew-related life support equipment, join the
growing assemblage of material from a heavy bomber from the
Second World War. Previous discoveries in the Area include
Brett_1019, thought to be from an American b-17 Flying
Fortress and Brett_1032 which could be from a Dornier 217
(see the 2021-2022 Annual Report for more details, www.
wessexarch.co.uk/sites/default/files/field_file/Protocol_annual_
report_2021-2022.pdf).
Britannia_1072, an aircraft fragment discovered by Dean
Jackson and Robert Lockley on board the Britannia Beaver.
Britannia_1072 (shown above) is an aircraft fragment that
was discovered by Dean Jackson and Robert Lockley on board
Britannia Beaver in a cargo chute on completion of the load.
It is a truncated piece of aluminium box section with what
appears to be the remains of a reinforcing plate section, and
rows of torn out double rows of rivet holes. It is approximately
570 mm long, and the box section is 60 mm across, with
curved edges and what appears to have been a square profile
originally. One end appears to possibly be the original finished
end of the box section, with the other showing evidence of
being truncated.
A small gas cylinder, Britannia_1073 (shown below), was also
discovered by Dean Jackson and Robert Lockley on board
Britannia Beaver on top of the cargo whilst taking ullages.
This find is the extant remains of a small, gas cylinder with valve
Britannia_1073, a small gas cylinder with valve and gauge, discovered by Dean Jackson and Robert Lockley on board
Britannia Beaver. The letters [..HOCHEM..] and [..AND] are visible on the neck of the valve.
2
and gauge measuring approximately 340 mm long. The gauge is
missing its glass and face, with the needle and mechanism visible.
On the neck of the valve, partially covered by a concretion, are
the letters [..HOCHEM..] and [..AND], the first being ‘The Ohio
Chem[ical] & MFG Co.’ and the second word being ‘Cleveland’.
The gauge was made by the Clapp Instrument Company and
showed psi (pressure) readings. This find was identified as a pilot’s
emergency oxygen cylinder of British origin by Steve Vizard of
Airframe Assemblies. Further research by Alistair Byford-Bates of
Wessex Archaeology suggests that it is an American H-1 emergency
oxygen cylinder or ‘bailout bottle’. This would be carried in a canvas
bag that was strapped to the leg of the airman, to their parachute
harness, or, in some cases, tucked in their boot tops. It would be
charged to around 1,800 psi (124 bar) and give around ten minutes
breathing time. A hose connector, or simple mouthpiece, in some
cases made of wood, would have been attached to this to breathe
through. These cylinders came into service for the United States
Army Air Force (USAAF) around October 1941 and were obsolete
four years later with their replacement by the Type H-2 model.
Dean Jackson and Robert Lockley discovered a B7 bomb shackle,
Britannia_1074 (seen on Page 3), on board Britannia Beaver
lying on top of the cargo whilst taking ullages. The identification
is based on the reference marks [TYPE-B-7] [100-1100] and
[FRONT] pressed into the side plates. It still has some of the
rivets holding the separate parts together, but references to
original drawings/images show that it has lost a number of bolts/
rivets, and possibly the springs from the internal mechanisms. It
is approximately 400 mm long. B7 bomb shackles were mounted
horizontally on the vertical beams in the bomb bays of B17s,
B24s, and B25s. The shackle ‘jaws’ at each end locked around
rings on the bomb and were ‘tripped’ electronically. The two
‘levers’ just visible in the centre of the image below were the
locking latches. Each bomb was winched into position, with the
two latches closing the jaws over the suspension lugs welded to
the bomb casing. The arming wires were then connected from
the aircraft’s electrical circuit to the bomb fuse train, and the
safety pins inserted to prevent the fuze impellors from turning
and arming the bomb. Before the approach to the target, the pins
were removed from each bomb, thus ‘arming’ them. When the
bomb release was triggered, the servo on each shackle pushed
against a detent which opened the jaws, releasing the bomb. As
the bomb dropped clear, the wires to the fuze chains pulled out,
which allowed the impellor to start spinning and arming the fuze.
Britannia_1074, a B7 bomb shackle, identified based on the reference marks [TYPE-B-7] [100-1100] and [FRONT].
Britannia_1076 (below) was discovered at Flathouse Quay,
Portsmouth by Paul Stevens in a cargo dredged by Britannia
Beaver. It is the remains of a lightweight metal, probably
aluminium, bracket with a series of holes drilled in it. It has one
surviving rivet still in place and is approximately 440 mm long
and 100 mm wide showing signs of being truncated at both
ends. It also has three holes suggestive of having plates or
flanges bolted to them. There are no visible identification marks
or stamps. The long edge on one side appears to have been
originally formed to give additional longitudinal strength.
This aircraft fragment, Brett_1080 (below), was discovered at
Flat House Quay, Portsmouth by Nathan O’Sullivan in a cargo
dredged by Britannia Beaver. It is the remains of a lightweight
metal, probably aluminium, bracket and box section with a
row of double rivets holding the remains of a bracket or plate
in place on one side. It is approximately 370 mm long and
90 mm wide showing signs of being truncated at one end. The
opposite end where the bracket is mounted appears to have
two half sections cut out, possibly where it butted up against
a tubular frame. A second set of double rivet holes is visible
on the opposite side to the bracket, suggesting that two plates
bracketed the tube that the box section butted against. There
are no visible identification marks or stamps, but there is what
appears to be black paint with a yellow primer visible on it.
Recent unpublished research by Historic England with the
Fleet Air Arm Museum has shown that aircraft paints can,
Brett_1080, an aircraft fragment discovered by Nathan O’Sullivan
in some cases, be traced to specific aircraft companies and
factories, even when they are the same basic colour. However,
this would require further research, including creating
a reference collection, as there are currently no central
databases of these paints to cross reference to.
The lack of identifying plates, stamps, or marks means that
the type or origin of the aircraft cannot currently be confirmed
from most of these recovered pieces. The corrosion and the
very close variations in measurement between both metric and
imperial measurements, i.e. millimetres (mm), standard wire
gauge (swg) or thousands of an inch (thou), used by aircraft
designers during this period, the spacing and diameter of
rivets, bolt holes and other spacings, combined with any drilling
or stamping errors, mean that these do not help in identifying
the origin of the fragments either. The damage to them also
means that the use of rivet pitch, which might identify the
manufacturer, rather than the possible country of origin, would
be open to a wide degree of error. The exceptions here are the
oxygen cylinder, which was issued to American aircrews, and
the B7 bomb shackle which is the design used in a number of
American built aircraft used by both the American and other
Allied forces during the Second World War.
Vessel staff dredging in Area 340 and wharf staff receiving
cargoes from the area should continue to keep a close eye out
for further discoveries!
Brittania_1076, a find made of lightweight metal, possibly
aluminium, discovered by Paul Stevens
3
 A Mammoth Find’s New Home at
the Natural History Museum
On 4 November 2019 an unusual discovery was made
aboard the Hanson Dredger Arco Avon whilst dredging in the
newly opened lane F10 in Licence Area 240. Crew member
Darryl Mason had found a virtually complete mammoth tooth
measuring a whopping 300 mm long by 160 mm wide and
retaining visible roots. Noting its rareness, staff on board the
vessel reported the find to the Protocol and were asked where
the cargo with the tooth was being delivered to. Hanson’s
Dagenham Wharf was discovered to be the lucky recipient and
was therefore contacted in advance to warn them that this cargo
may contain finds of significant archaeological importance.
Further reports of finds of several worked flint tools and animal
bones came through from Dagenham Wharf. Thanks to the
rapid reporting of finds by vessel and wharf staff, and early
recognition of their probable importance, it was possible to plan
an operational sampling visit for the following week to assess
the remaining cargo. In the end, the cargo produced a total of
30 worked flint artefacts, including pristine handaxes and flakes,
as well as 111 animal bones and teeth!

The tooth (that we nicknamed Cedric) was brought back to

Wessex Archaeology’s Salisbury office and placed in fresh water
for several months to remove the salts embedded within it
after spending so much time on the seabed – a process called
desalination. Once desalinated, Cedric was weighed daily to
ensure that he was drying at a steady rate and was even taken
home by a member of the Protocol over Christmas to have his
daily weigh. Images of Cedric were sent to Professor Adrian
Lister at the Natural History Museum for further identification,
who agreed that it is a nice specimen of a mammoth tooth.
He said that it was the 3rd (last molar) of an animal about 35
years old that dates very probably to the Late Pleistocene woolly
mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius), although he would have to
take measurements to rule out the earlier (Middle Pleistocene)
Mammuthus trogontherii. He said much of the cement has been
eroded, presumably through its history at the bottom of the sea,
but the roots are so complete that he wouldn’t be surprised to
find the skull, or parts of it, still on the seabed.

Once dry and stable, Hanson Aggregates Marine were contacted

to ask whether they would be happy for this excellent specimen
to be offered to the Natural History Museum which they agreed
to. Professor Adrian Lister was delighted and arrangements were
made with himself and Neil Adams, Curators of Fossil Mammals,
to arrange for the tooth to be donated. On 24 April 2023,
members of Hanson Aggregates Marine, including Darryl, the
original finder of the tooth, and staff from Wessex Archaeology
were invited to the Natural History Museum to deliver the
tooth to its new home. The tooth has since been dated by the
University of Oxford, and dates to about 35,700 years ago!

A huge thank you to those on-board Arco Avon for reporting

the tooth that day and for taking and sending the excellent
photographs. This led to the discovery of several other nationally
significant Palaeolithic finds, a new exclusion zone in lane F10, a
journal article on the discoveries and a find so important, that it
has a new home at the Natural History Museum.

Above: Hanson Aggregates Marine staff at the Natural History

Museum, where the mammoth tooth is now displayed.
Middle: Professor Adrian Lister and Neil Adams, Curators of
Fossil Mammals at the Natural History Museum, with the tooth.
Below: the complete mammoth tooth, measuring 300 mm
by 160 mm, which belonged to an animal about 35 years old
and dates to about 35,700 years ago!

4
Mammoth Overview
Although there are ten different species of mammoth,
Mammuthus primigenius or woolly mammoth is probably
the most well known and most common to find remains of.
The woolly mammoth lived in steppe tundra habitat (also called
mammoth steppe, an ecosystem made up of low shrubs, sedges,
and grasses), which was widespread across Eurasia and North Ha
America during the Pleistocene. They existed in Europe during ns o
n_0
the Late Middle and Late Pleistocene, dating from 350,000 to 410
10,000 thousand years ago. They were largely extinct by about
10,000 years ago, due to the pressures of a warming climate
(which reduced the habitat of these cold-adapted mammals) _0 612
combined with being hunted by humans. LTM

The woolly mammoth’s teeth were made up of alternating plates

of enamel and a denture that often became worn down by
constant back-to-front chewing motions. These plates of enamel
are what give the teeth its recognisable shape.

Teeth are tools which allow food to be processed in the mouth.

From the amount of wear and abrasion fossilised teeth can
provide a wealth of information about the animal they came
from, including their age, their shape, and diet. One of the finds
reported to the Protocol, UMA_0107 (see image below) is largely
unworn and indicates that it might be a milk tooth of a younger
specimen. Important changes can be seen in the teeth of the
mammoths as each species have evolved; there is an increase in
the number of enamel bands (plates) in the molars and thinning
of the enamel. The dental changes resulted in increased Ce
me
x_0
resistance to abrasion, which is believed to indicate a shift from 792
woodland browsing to grazing in open grassy habitats of the
Pleistocene. This shows how these finds can tell us about the
environment in the past!

Remains may end up in marine contexts having been washed

from terrestrial deposits by rivers or eroded from cliffs or
beaches. Alternatively, they may date to a time when the seabed
was dry land. During the last 2.5 million years, there have been
numerous cold periods, called ‘glacials’, where large ice sheets
covered much of Britain and most of the North-west European
Peninsula. During the height of the last ice age, known as
the Devensian (c.18,000 years ago), it has been estimated
that the sea level was approximately 120 m lower than it is
today, exposing areas of the North Sea as dry land. This would
have been prime land for our ancestors and the animals they Tarma
hunted. The area from which Cedric was dredged became fully c_ 0450
submerged around 10,000 years ago as the Ice Age ended
and water was released from the ice caps. There is a chance of
encountering ancient finds in a number of Licence Areas as a
result of changing sea levels, so keep a look out! The East Coast
region is a particular hotspot, and of the over 30 teeth we’ve had Ha
reported to the Protocol, the majority come from this area. ns
on _05
3 3
Right: a selection of mammoth teeth
found through the Protocol.

07
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5
 Site Visits
This year the Protocol team have been delighted to receive so
many requests for awareness training. Following on from the
visits to Tarmac’s Tilbury and Greenwich wharves highlighted
in Issue 32 of Dredged Up, we have paid a visit to Cemex’s
Dagenham Wharf, Brett’s new wharf at Portsmouth and aboard
Britania Beaver.

The team at Cemex Dagenham Wharf requested training despite

having awareness training last year. This visit was requested so
that their work experience student who was there for the
half-term week could learn about the archaeological potential in
the marine dredging industry! Training with staff aboard the Britannia Beaver

Flathouse Quay is a new site for Brett in Portsmouth. Despite
being a new addition, the Protocol team have been extremely
impressed by the enthusiasm and number of finds reported by
site champion Ben Johnson and the rest of the wharf team!
Lastly, the Protocol team were invited to complete training for
the Britannia Beaver crew as they had a newly promoted Chief
Officer, Sonia Mitchell, who is going to become the new Site
Champion onboard. It was a great experience conducting
training on a vessel!
The sessions are designed to be informal and involved an
interactive presentation from the Protocol Implementation Team
to explain the different ways archaeology can reach the seabed
and what to do if it is found in the cargo during dredging or when
landed at the wharf. The reporting process was discussed and
an array of archaeological finds previously reported through
the Protocol were passed around for staff to handle. Handouts,
laminated scale sheets, photo scale cards and the last edition
of Dredged Up were also passed around. The handouts are
designed to be left at the wharf or on board the vessel to enable
Site Champions to induct future new employees and so that
current employees can refresh their memories. All archaeological
awareness materials can be accessed through the Protocol
pages on Wessex Archaeology’s website (www.wessexarch.
co.uk/our-work/marine-aggregate-industry-protocol-reporting-
finds-archaeological-interest) and are available in English, Dutch
and French.
The Protocol Implementation Team firmly believe that these visits
are key to the scheme’s success as it promotes enthusiasm
and resolves any issues that may arise. As well as delivering
the training, the visits allow the team to maintain contact with
wharves and vessels, keep the content fresh, boost interest in
the Protocol and promote it to both new and existing staff.
If you would like to book a Protocol Awareness Visit or would like
to receive more advice on finds and the reporting process, then
please get in touch by emailing protocol@wessexarch.co.uk
or calling 01722 326867.

Visiting the Britannia Beaver

6
 The Marine Aggregate
Industry Archaeological
Protocol Quiz
This year is the 18th anniversary of the Protocol
Implementation Service, and we are coming close to 2,500
finds! With this in mind we thought we’d give you a quiz
about them!

1) How many cannonballs have been reported to the

protocol?

A) 0-99
B) 100-199
C) 200+

2) Which of the following types of find has been the

largest find reported to the Protocol?

A) An anchor
B) A munition
C) Wooden shipwreck material

3) As of this issue, which dredging region has produced

the most finds?

A) Thames Estuary
B) East Coast
C) South Coast

4) Which Time Team member came along to Hanson

Dagenham Wharf to search for flints from Area 240?

A) Tony Robinson
B) Phil Harding
C) John Gater

5) Which of these objects is the only one that is

technically archaeological?

A) Woolly mammoth tooth

B) Ammonite fossil
C) Palaeontological shark tooth

them being reported!

past. However, they are still interesting and we appreciate
of years old so therefore wouldn’t tell us about the human
Fossilised ammonites and shark teeth are usually millions
have lived in Britain for only around 900,000 years.
5) A, Archaeology covers only the human past, and people

bone and 15 flint pieces including an unfinished handaxe.

Historic England and the wharf found 18 fragments of animal
4) B, Phil Harding along with members of the Protocol team,

3) B, The East Coast region has reported over 1,200 finds!

ship – the largest section measured over 6 m x 3 m!

2) C, Cemex_1029 comprised parts of the hull of a wooden

years making them one of the most common finds reported!

1) B, there have been over 120 cannonballs reported in 18
Images from Flathouse Quay, a new site in Portsmouth, where
Amy Lammiman (Wessex Archaeology) conducted training for Answers:
members of the Brett team.

7
 Goodbyes!
This year we have said goodbye to a couple of members of the Protocol Implementation team. We wish them both
the best of luck in their new ventures and return to university!
Above: Lowri at Brighton Wharf; below: Amy at CEMEX Dagenham
And we’d like to say a warm welcome to the newest members of the Protocol Implementation Team!
Left: Stephanie Morris, and right: Adam Nightingale, the newest
members of the Protocol Implementation Team!
Lowri Roberts
Lowri was a long-standing member of the team having worked on
the Protocol since 2017. A familiar face to many, she has been
heavily involved with Awareness training visits and Operational
Sampling. She also has written reports and is officially published
with a review of Pleistocene landscapes and environments in
the southern North Sea, in Internet Archaeology (intarch.ac.uk/
journal/issue61/8/index.html).
“My favourite find of the Protocol was CEMEX_0908; a
submarine pyrotechnic discovered in Licence Area 137. This flare
was found associated with a canvas parachute that, despite
a few holes, was complete with the remains of the string. It
probably dates to the Second World War and is a great find!”
“My favourite moment was going to Hanson’s Dagenham Wharf to
look through all the Area 240 cargo in November 2019 with Aaron
Chidgey and the rest of the wharf team.”
Amy Lammiman
Amy is a University of Southampton student who has been
completing a year long placement within the Coastal & Marine
team at Wessex Archaeology. She has been involved in a number
of aspects of the Protocol this year including writing wharf reports,
the MAI Annual Report 2021-2022, Dredged Up issues 31-33 and
conducting Operational Sampling and Awareness training.
“Some of my favourite moments of this year have been doing
Awareness training visits. It was a treat to be asked to come on
the Britannia Beaver as I’d never been on a dredger before! All
the sessions were a laugh and great to teach wharf/vessel staff
about archaeology. Overall, I’ve learnt so much this year and
loved working on the Protocol!”
Stephanie Morris
Stephanie Morris is an Australian archaeologist who joins
us from the Wessex Archaeology office in Edinburgh.
She started with us in 2021, and has already been busy
with intertidal walkover surveys, report writing, tendering
and community outreach.
Adam Nightingale
Adam Nightingale has been with Wessex Archaeology since
July 2022, and started as a fieldwork archaeologist, undertaking
various types of fieldwork, including survey, excavation and
recording. He has recently moved over to the Coastal & Marine
team and is getting stuck in with Protocol work.